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Ecclestone says more F1 races in U.S., fewer in Europe

The success of the United States Grand Prix in Austin has F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone convinced there is room for more races in this country. Photo by LAT PHOTOGRAPHIC

Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone wants to see three F1 races in the United States, and that will likely mean fewer races in Europe.

“We'll probably lose two or three more races in Europe, because we have to sort of move on,” Ecclestone said.

This remark has sent shock waves through the motorsports community in the region that has always been regarded as the heartland of Grand Prix racing.

Ecclestone was acknowledging that second and third events in the United States, which have recently become so clear an ambition for Formula One, would come at the cost of existing races. “We need to get that New Jersey-New York event working, and maybe one in southern California as well,” Ecclestone told Sky Sports News. “We want three races here [in the U.S.]”

The New Jersey event and the inaugural Russian Grand Prix in Sochi will join the calendar in 2014, while deals in Thailand and Mexico are in negotiation. According to Indian media, Ecclestone has also opened talks about staging a second race in that nation, probably in Mumbai.

Even though the new Concorde Agreement, set to be implemented on Jan. 1, has provision for more than 20 races, some of the existing fixtures will have to go. Ecclestone favors a race reduction in Europe, where only eight fixtures remain.

It is inconceivable that F1 would drop Monaco, while the constructors would not accept losing the traditional races in the U.K., Italy or Germany. This puts on shaky ground Belgium, Hungary and both races in Spain, especially the European Grand Prix in Valencia. And it doesn't look good for attempts to revive the French Grand Prix, either.